If you happen to have a clutch change (or Throwback Tuesday, RMS swap), then visually inspect and pull the outer seal.

Just remember, you have the dual-row IMSB with less than an 1/8th of the chance of dying as the 996.2 or even my current car! (indeed, most 997.1 Carrera/Targa)

Sleep well!

... do fit an LTT though

PS - - my first Porsche was a 996 Carrera 4 3.4 X51!

I'll leave alone then! So many different opinions and experts on the net!

Your first car looks great! I have the same wheels and side skirts but standard front and rear bumpers

What are the benefits of LTT and what's the best source? Is it a Porsche or aftermarket part?

Benefits are mitigated borescore (note, this is almost irrelevant on better cooled 996.1 3.4, but still advantageous).

Performance and economy improve slightly (the engine is designed to run hot to lower NOx and other secondary emissions)

The part is after market (sort of, the housing and gasket are OEM and factory Cup Cars run even cooler at 130F/55C, but the thermostat part will not be available from Porsche - although the part is from the same OEM manufacture of both high and low temp thermostats)

See here (best place FrazerPart @ £45 for housing, thermostat, gasket and delivery)

I suspect the RMS (seal) was changed (the IMS seal would not be noted as it is not serviceable part, ie very few would know about it and no OPC could touch it as there is no TSB on its serviceability - it's a whole new IMS and IMSB (with seals) if it were actioned by OPC)

Hi,

Have just dug through the paperwork.

It did have a clutch at OPC East London circa 12k miles ago in 2011 at 51k. Then working back from there it was serviced three times by Porsche in 5k miles/2 years (45k, 48k and 50k). All at the same OPC. Seems astonishing to me but with the clutch change, a set of discs and a set of tyres plus a few misc items the previous owner spent close to £7k in 6k miles on just routine stuff.

Anyway - for some reason prior to that at around 36k miles it had a clutch change but this time at a Porsche Specialist - 'Porsheworx Engineering' (have never heard of them myself before) and the invoice shows the following:

'Intermediate shaft plate and bolts' and then on the bottom of the invoice it shows 'Replaced leaking intermediate plate and seal'

I would have assumed as you say it would be an RMS leak but they have also listed that separately - any ideas?

Well, it is the IMS plate seal, but that not only is pretty rare (vs RMS leaks), but is also not the IMSB seal.

The plate seal is the brown ribbed "o-ring" here:

And pissing oil here:

Now it is the free oil (normally only) the other side of that end plate that you want to treat the IMSB to.

ie strip the IMSB of its outer seal and let the block oil in (in a way, the oil out the plate and not in the seal is the EXACT opposite of what you want!)

X51 996Trainee

Joined: 14 Nov 2016Posts: 90Location: Surrey

Posted: Wed Feb 15, 2017 11:47 am Post subject:

GT4 wrote:

Well, it is the IMS plate seal, but that not only is pretty rare (vs RMS leaks), but is also not the IMSB seal.

The plate seal is the brown ribbed "o-ring" here:

And pissing oil here:

Now it is the free oil (normally only) the other side of that end plate that you want to treat the IMSB to.

ie strip the IMSB of its outer seal and let the block oil in (in a way, the oil out the plate and not in the seal is the EXACT opposite of what you want!)

Hi again,

Thanks for the details.

I wonder if when the RMS was leaking in the past, maybe the oil leaked over the IMS plate - hence possibly a misdiagnosis or changed as a precaution if they don't usually leak? Who knows - it was circa ten years ago now.

So I guess as it's not likely to need a clutch anytime soon (done last by Porsche 12k back) and there is no sign of oil leaks from that area then probably best to leave it alone?

Not aware of any untoward noises etc so I might just do the LTT and a coolant change at some point soon for peace of mind.

Does the 3.6 X51 have any additional lubrication/oil system mods other than the baffled sump? Anything else I should be concerned about or look into?

No problem, hopefully they are useful._________________40th Anniversary

Algetsa911Newbie

Joined: 09 Oct 2017Posts: 1

Posted: Mon Oct 09, 2017 5:24 am Post subject:

I just bought an 3.4 X51 and this thread has been awesome to review and super interesting - though I'm not sure it mattered whether some guy did/didn't get his info first hand (like a resident anorak needed to assert).
It seems that the most important think is to ensure that any shop working in these limited run cars ensure they source correct parts over time to keep them to original spec, and thereby retaining the individuality and value. Cheers to everyone who's contributed.

jawNewbie

Joined: 03 Sep 2015Posts: 2

Posted: Wed Dec 06, 2017 11:00 pm Post subject:

GT4 wrote:

Leave it alone.

If you happen to have a clutch change (or Throwback Tuesday, RMS swap), then visually inspect and pull the outer seal.

Just remember, you have the dual-row IMSB with less than an 1/8th of the chance of dying as the 996.2 or even my current car! (indeed, most 997.1 Carrera/Targa)

You dont often see that for sale on ebay _________________911 Owners,Some Invest In The Future,
Others Enjoy The Moment Today.

85eurocarreraNewbie

Joined: 12 Apr 2018Posts: 2

Posted: Thu Apr 12, 2018 1:47 pm Post subject:

steve r wrote:

Some more 3.6 X51 info.

No mention of a different oil pump for the 3.6 & the 3rd radiator is mentioned but the 40th Anniversary didn't get it due to the larger Turbo rads.

This post references that there are no scavenger pump listed on the 40th anniversary motor. I have found a car with no scavenger pump on heads, but all other external parts. It didn't come factory, according to build sticker. Car is 2003. But it did have S stamped on engine tag. I will try to post pic.

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